Monthly Archives: June 2017

Jun30

Creative Juice #48

Posted on June 30, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Twelve articles to tickle your fancy:

I love to see what this quilting group is up to.
Michelangelo’s David.
Do you love zentangle, or want to know more about it? Read this article listing premier zentangle websites.
Lost your marbles? Here are some pretty ones.
Boats in watercolor.
Encouraging children’s sense of wonder through Bible stories.
Who’s the father of the To-Do list?
The illustrations of Rebecca Thornburgh.
Ways that journaling can enhance your life.
Quirky felt creations.
Truths that would change the way we live—if only we could remember them.
And speaking of change, here’s how I feel about it.

Jun30

In the Meme Time: Don’t Twiddle

Posted on June 30, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Jun29

Video of the Week #104: Bartlett

Posted on June 29, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Longer than most of the videos on ARHtistic License, this documentary on the process of painter Bo Bartlett is worth your time.

Jun29

Guest Post: Playing With Resist and Watercolors by Alice Hendon

Posted on June 29, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Guest Post: Playing With Resist and Watercolors by Alice Hendon

A great big ARHtistic License thank you to Alice Hendon for this fabulous idea. I’ve ordered my resist pen, and I can’t wait to try this. Check out Alice’s other work at The Creator’s Leaf.

Zentangle All Around recently had a prompt to think outside the box. Try something you’ve not done before. A product, a technique, anything that breaks the block we artists all feel at one time or another. Christine called the prompt: Break the Block!

Months ago I bought a Prima product called Watercolor Resist Pen. A bottle of liquid that allows you to mask off an area so you can have contrast when you watercolor. It has a needle tip on it and you just squeeze. I used a piece of mixed media paper and made scrolls and loops using the resist pen. Then I put it somewhere safe from Aurora to dry overnight.

The next day, I used a small watercolor set also from Prima and watercolored my paper. I slopped on a lot of water to start with – then added the color. It was cool to watch how the color moved to the borders of the resist and sat there. I was curious about the amount of water I added. I really thought it would seep under the edges of the resist lines.

Here is what it looked like dry. I did not use a heat gun to dry this. I wasn’t sure how the resist would react with the heat, so I just stuck it back in the safe spot and waited. I really love how the colors mixed with each other. Notice – when the color bumped up to the resist lines, as it dried the resist pushed the color back in on itself. And made those cool little wiggly edges all around. I love it!

Yesterday, I started peeling off the resist. It pulled up in a little rubbery strip, kind of like rubber cement did when we were kids. Notice that the color did not seep under the resist like I thought it might. It left a good crisp, clear line.

And the white line left behind looks exactly like the resist line did. All the little blobs and blunders I made – not thinking ahead of time where I wanted to go – all still show up. But that’s ok. I like it! Next, I will take this sheet and start tangling it up!

Resist and frisket are the same things. And I truly believe rubber cement would do the same thing. Just remember with it – the fumes are killer for headaches. We don’t even have any in our house just for that very reason.

Just have fun and play some today.

Jun28

Wordless Wednesday: Flower of the Day

Posted on June 28, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Doing double duty with Cee’s Flower of the Day Challenge. Isn’t my neighbor’s corner lot drop-dead gorgeous? Bougainvillea:

Jun27

#dyicad2017 Days 20-26

Posted on June 27, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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In June and July, I am participating in Daisy Yellow’s Index-Card-a-Day challenge, in which we create a little something on an index card every day–61 mini-masterpieces. I will be posting my projects every Tuesday.

Day 20’s prompt was yin/yang. I interpreted it as a composite drawing of my husband, Greg, and me. We’re different, but we complement each other well. We’ve been married thirty-four years.

This is us in real life (Christmas, 2016, modeling hand-crocheted and knitted gifts from our daughter Erin). I think I captured us in the drawing above.

Day 21’s prompt was simplicity. I chose to do double duty with the #LetterfortheLord movement.

For Day 22 I decided to try my hand at a mandala, because I received a compass kit that I’d ordered. This is officially my favorite card of the week:

Day 23’s prompt was Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and didn’t get around to doing a card that day, though I knew I wanted to draw the white rabbit. So I drew him on Day 24 instead:

Day 25’s prompt was portrait. I used a picture on Pinterest as a reference photo:

Day 26’s prompt was green. It seemed like a good excuse to do more zentangle:

I’m enjoying this challenge. You can participate, too, and you don’t even have to make up any days you’ve missed. Check the FAQs for more details, and search Instagram for #dyicad2017 to see what other participants have done–they’re amazing, so creative.

Jun26

Monday Morning Wisdom #108

Posted on June 26, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Whatever it takes to finish things, finish. You will learn more from a glorious failure than you ever will from something you never finished. ~Neil Gaiman

Jun25

From the Creator’s Heart #104

Posted on June 25, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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“Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” Isaiah 43:1-3 (NLT)

Jun25

Weekend Writing Warriors, Snippet #60

Posted on June 25, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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Every Sunday, the Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sundayshare 8-10-sentence snippets from their works-in-progress on their blogs for others to read and comment on. Join the fun! Click on the links to see the full lists.

From Gabe’s Garage of Goodies (picture book): Gabe has too many power tools, and his efforts to help always end in disaster. Can Mike ditch Gabe without hurting his feelings?

At the end of last week’s barbecue, Mike makes a request:

“Gabe, I was wondering—could I borrow your hedge clippers?” asked Mike.

“Sure–follow me,” invited Gabe, leading the way to the garage.

He raised the door, and Mike couldn’t believe what he saw: the entire garage was lined with shelves, and every shelf was stuffed with boxes, some of which had never been opened. The floor was covered with stacks of boxes and piles of tools. The men could barely squeeze their way among the merchandise.

“This section is the automotive department, and over here is the paint shop, and there are my carpentry supplies, and the lawn-and-garden stuff is right here.” Gabe wedged himself between an electric mower and a gas mower and slithered past a weed chopper before tiptoeing through a maze of rakes, hoes, hole diggers, and weeding claws. “Now, here are the manual hedge clippers,” he said, handing Mike what looked like an enormous pair of scissors, “but I’m sure my electric ones are here someplace.” Gabe rummaged around on the shelves. “I had everything in alphabetical order once,” he confided apologetically.

Please pardon the run-on sentences; I’m trying to keep to the 10-sentence limit. I know it’s short, but what do you think of this small excerpt? Any suggestions on how I can make it better? Please comment below.

Jun24

Phoenix Art Museum

Posted on June 24, 2017 by Andrea R Huelsenbeck

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This past Mother’s Day, my youngest daughter, Katie, spent the afternoon with me at the Phoenix Art Museum. Here is a sampling of what we saw–just a tiny bit of the museum.

Ballet Dancer by Everett Shinn

Birdie Serenade by Gregory West

Detail of above

The Golfer by Victor Vasarely

Nude Man by Viola Frey, glazed ceramic

When we were on the raised platform where the Nude Man sat, Katie looked across the way and asked about the view below, “Is that a hallway or another piece of art?”

Answer: it’s a hallway; but do you see why she thought it might be a large mural or something?

Below is the wooden facade from a house in Hue, Vietnam.

Upside Down, Inside Out by Anish Kapoor, sculpture made of resin and paint:

Below, Column Interminable by Betsabeé Romero: 17 “tires” inscribed with symbols from pre-conquest North, South, and Central America, the Aztecs, the Paracas people of Peru, and the ancient Hohokam people who lived in what is now Arizona. Romero’s themes are migration and borders.

The portrait below of Philip Glass looks photographic, no? It’s not. Viewed up close, you’d see it’s a jacquard tapestry woven of very fine colored fibers. I’m guessing technology was key in producing this. I can’t imagine it was woven by hand. Phil–State I by Chuck Close:

Fernando Bryce drew the collection of drawings below from advertisements and newspaper articles about Leni Riefenstahl, the German dancer and actress who directed Nazi propaganda films. His motivation for the work was to explore the tension of an artist working on behalf of an evil dictator.